


Resurrection Day

by EternallyEC



Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, Gen, Post-Canon Fix-It
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-24
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2021-01-02 06:48:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21157370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EternallyEC/pseuds/EternallyEC
Summary: When the war had ended and the dust settled, Shaw had been left to her own devices. The world had changed completely; there were no numbers, there was no more Machine. Only time would tell if they had managed to save her and in the meantime, she tried to figure out what a normal life looked like.A post-canon fix-it, because this has been my headcanon for years and I decided it was time to write it out.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [andthatisterrible](https://archiveofourown.org/users/andthatisterrible/gifts).

> Here I am again, this time with a much brighter outlook on what happened after we saw Shaw and Bear answer that payphone. 
> 
> I know this part is short--I just spent over an hour editing and re-writing it and it came out just as short, somehow so I give up. The next chapter is quite a bit longer, promise! Please let me know what you think and look out for chapter 2 coming as soon as I get it polished!

When the war had ended and the dust settled, Shaw had been left to her own devices. The world had changed completely; there were no numbers, there was no more Machine. Only time would tell if they had managed to save her and in the meantime, she tried to figure out what a normal life looked like.

She’d rented an apartment with the savings she had left over; it wasn’t much, but there was plenty of hot water, a decent enough kitchen and they allowed Bear. She didn’t need much more than that.

There was still enough money left in her savings that she wouldn’t have to get a job for a while, thankfully. Although she was grateful for the quiet after everything that she’d been through, she couldn’t imagine taking on a normal job. She couldn’t envision herself doing something like that stupid perfume counter full-time or on a regular basis without it being a cover; she couldn’t begin to imagine what living a life where she didn’t need a cover would be like and she didn’t really care to find out.

Frowning, she reached down to scratch behind Bear’s ears to distract herself. If they’d succeeded, she wouldn’t have to worry about it anyway because the numbers would start coming again and even though she’d never been much of a planner type, she thought she might enjoy the change of pace, working for herself for once.

But no matter how prepared Shaw thought herself, she was still taken aback the day that she had taken Bear out for a walk, Root’s leather jacket a little too long but comforting around her and heard the payphone ringing. She sucked in a sharp breath as she heard Root’s voice come over the line and put a steadying hand on Bear’s head to steady herself at the threatening tidal wave of emotions that she just barely managed to swallow down.

She frowned as she typed the numbers into her phone, quickly realizing that it wasn’t a number at all. Hanging up the payphone, she studied the numbers for just a moment before she realized that most of it was code. The first six numbers seemed to be separate so she figured they were actual numbers and moved on to the next line.

“Bingo,” she said softly, quickly recognizing the pattern and working the code out as Bear waited patiently. She’d have to give him extra treats and scratches when they got home, she thought idly as she worked, finishing rather quickly and feeling her body thrum with the excitement of having a purpose again.

She’d been right; the number wasn’t a number at all. It was an address.

~

Weighing her options, Shaw decided to take Bear along with her since the address was just a few blocks away from her apartment and he had hardly gotten any of his walk yet. She also told herself that it’d be good to have a reason for being the neighborhood; a woman walking a dog wouldn’t draw as much attention as she would going alone.

That was what she told herself anyway; she knew that it wasn’t the full story but chose to believe it anyway. It was better than the alternative of admitting that having the first mission after the war also meant that it was the first mission without…

Taking a deep, steadying, breath, Shaw shook her head to banish the thought. She couldn’t think about Root now, couldn’t think about her ever. Root had always complicated things beyond her ability to understand and that hadn’t changed when she’d… gone away.

Shaw rolled her eyes and forced herself to think the words, never one to sugarcoat the truth. Since Root had died. She hadn’t gone away like the bullshit story parents feed their coddled kids to protect them from the truth. She was beyond that and no matter how much it hurt, she knew that she couldn’t keep ignoring the fact that Root had died. She deserved better than that, especially with the way she’d gone out a hero.

Swallowing, Shaw knelt as they came to a stop in front of the address to fuss over Bear both as a distraction and a reason to check the place out. The house was small and cozy, an effect given by being far too close to the houses beside it. The lawn definitely needed some work and she could see a few cracks and missing roof tiles that pointed towards a serious need for home repair, but overall it looked lived-in without being an eyesore.

Shaw frowned as she glanced down at her phone, uncertain of how ‘turned on’ the Machine was and snorted at herself for the lame term. Root would have given her a lot of grief and told her how ridiculous the term was for someone like Her.

Giving Bear a final pat, she stood up and, at a loss for what to do, murmured, “Why did you bring me here?” and hoped for the best.

Suddenly, her cell phone buzzed and she glanced down to see a notification for a new text message.

_BACK DOOR – OPEN._

Shaw frowned. Of all of the things she had expected to happen…

“You want me to break in?” she questioned with a frown, but apparently the Machine was done talking. She groaned as she glanced down at Bear and back to the house, wondering what she should do about him. The street seemed quiet enough but she didn’t trust him enough to leave him and besides, he’d been trained for much more dangerous situations than this.

“Guess you’re coming with me,” she said, almost smiling when his tail began wagging excitedly in response. “_Stil_,” she commanded, knowing it wasn’t necessary but wanting to make sure he understood that they were back in business. Bear immediately quieted and didn’t make a peep as Shaw began to look for a way to get to the back door.

As it turned out, making her way to the back door was easy. The gate leading into the backyard was broken and whoever lived there hadn’t bothered to even try to latch it. She shook her head despairingly, wondering how whoever it was that lived here survived with such disregard for the most basic of safety rules.

The back door was open just as the Machine had said, and Shaw grimaced a little at the sound of Bear’s toenails on the hardwood floor of the kitchen it led into. Thankfully, the rest of the house appeared to be carpeted and muted the sound as they continued deeper into the house.

Drawing her weapon just in case, Shaw carefully made her way through the entire downstairs area. The house was sparsely furnished with nothing in the way of a personal touch as far as she could see. Bear had begun to act oddly, sniffing the ground and glancing up at Shaw like there was something he knew that she didn’t, his tail beginning to wag again.

“What is it boy?” she asked quietly, frowning when she came to the stairs. Suddenly, there was a noise coming from that direction and she found she had a bad feeling about whatever she was going to find up there, although she couldn’t put her finger on why.

“Bear, _b__lijf_,” she whispered, unclipping his leash and laying it over the railing so that he wouldn’t be stuck if things went sour. Slowly beginning the climb up the stairs, she took great pains to keep her steps light and to avoid the areas that tended to creak on older stairs, leftover lessons from her ISA days.

But for all her precautions, no sooner had she reached the top of the stairs did the nearest door swing open and suddenly there was a gun being pointed at her face. “I don’t know what kind of a suicide mission you’re on,” a voice that sounded all too familiar but couldn’t _possibly be_ taunted, the sudden stream of light coming out of the room blinding Shaw to the identity of the speaker who was apparently tall, lithe and a woman, all things that matched up with the voice she would know anywhere.

“But you certainly chose the wrong-- _Sameen?” _

Shaw had frozen in the middle of drawing her own weapon, wondering what the hell was going on and if this was some kind of a joke. The more the woman spoke, the more certain she’d become of her identity, whether she wanted to believe it or not. Exhaling sharply, she replaced her gun as her eyes finally adjusted to the light and she saw Root’s face.

“What the hell?”

TO BE CONTINUED


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still, the worst part was knowing how much she’d hurt the people she cared about in an effort to protect them. She still didn’t know who’d survived and who was gone; without the Machine available to update her and Samaritan masking everything a little too perfectly, she’d had no way of keeping up with the war and all she’d been able to do was cling to the hope that her plan had worked and that at least some of her friends had survived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the lovely kudos and reviews on chapter 1! Here's chapter 2 and the conclusion of my little headcanon. I can't lie, I've grown quite attached to these two versions of our favorite dynamic duo so I may dabble a bit more in this universe, see what the pair of them can get up to in their brave new world while TM finds Her footing again. 
> 
> Thank you for reading and for being so kind! I've written Shoot before but it's been ages and they still make me nervous. It's so nice to have kudos and reviews letting me know I'm doing them justice! Enjoy!

Root had spent the past several months learning to adjust to a life that she’d never had a chance to live before. Staying in one place, working a ‘real’ job in a tech support call center which was insultingly easy but allowed her a freeing amount of anonymity, having a place of her own to come home to at night… All in all, it wasn’t as bad as she’d feared it would be during hushed conversations with the Machine planning everything out.

The worst part wasn’t even the deafening silence in her ear that still seemed far louder than anything she heard out of the other. She’d never had much time to grieve the loss of her hearing after getting the implant and replacing it with the Machine’s voice constantly, but now that was gone and so was her peace with it.

Still, the worst part was knowing how much she’d hurt the people she cared about in an effort to protect them. She still didn’t know who’d survived and who was gone; without the Machine available to update her and Samaritan masking everything a little too perfectly, she’d had no way of keeping up with the war and all she’d been able to do was cling to the hope that her plan had worked and that at least some of her friends had survived.

Friends. It was funny, the way that had all worked out, she thought ruefully, staring at the wall thoughtfully with her hands wrapped around a cup of tea. After Hanna had died, something deep inside of her had changed as Samantha Groves had died and Root was born. Samantha Groves had been trusting, believing that her friend would protect her from anything. Root had been the product of Samantha Groves realizing that Hanna hadn’t even been able to protect herself and that even the adults she had trusted were just bad code.

She’d wanted to be Harold’s friend for a long time, but they’d never quite gotten there. She supposed it was partially her fault, first impressions and all that. But she’d never expected to find the uneasy partnership they’d shared before she’d had to force his hand in a drastic way, and she’d expected the friendship of Reese and Fusco even less.

But if she had been surprised by their friendship, it was nothing compared to her complete shock when she had met Sameen Shaw. But that thought stung a little too much and she pushed it away, shaking her head as she thought of her again and wondered what had happened to Shaw.

Shaw, who she’d finally been building something real with for just a week before everything had gone to hell. Shaw, who had admitted to her in an overwhelming and uncharacteristic moment of openness that Root had been her safe place and kept her from succumbing to Samaritan’s torturous attempts to turn her. Shaw, whose face she had seen go colder than she’d ever seen standing over her empty grave both at the funeral and after she had dug it up herself to plant the notion that Samaritan had taken her body.

When the Machine had suggested the ruse of digging up her own grave and planting the fear that Samaritan had some of Her code through Root’s implant, the thought had made her feel sick and She had gently suggested that she didn’t have to go through with it. But she’d shaken off her feelings and assured Her that she understood and had obeyed without further hesitation.

The main goal had been to push Harold even farther and hope that he would finally heed the risks and do what needed to be done. That was the official purpose anyway, although Root had harbored another one. The only request she’d made of the Machine was to ensure that Shaw came to the scene and though She didn’t question it, Root knew that She was curious and she had explained to her that it would piss Shaw enough to hopefully save her life. Shaw was always more precise and far more lethal when she was pissed off and she just hoped that it would be enough to save her life.

It had been months since the war had ended and although she had been tempted to do a little research to try and find Shaw, she’d never gotten farther than the search bar. It didn’t feel right to impose on Sameen’s privacy in such a way and truthfully, she’d been scared of the reception she would receive or, worse yet, that she might discover that Shaw was... She swallowed and shook her head to clear it, refusing to allow that thought process to go any further.

And, of course, there was the constant awareness that just because Samaritan was dead didn’t mean the threat was totally gone… and without the Machine, she’d have no warning if one of their remaining agents found her.

And yet, with everything that had happened, she had awoken this morning and something had felt… changed. The sun seemed a little brighter and the world just felt more inviting and Root couldn’t help but wonder if maybe today was resurrection day, though she had no good reason to think it.

She’d gone about her routine as normal, grateful that she didn’t have to ruin her good mood by going into work since she had the day off. Not long after she’d finished breakfast and a cup of coffee, she had retreated into the master bedroom turned office to skim the news and see if the Machine would attempt to make contact with her. She couldn’t explain why she was so certain that She had survived and was back online, but not even the lack of a sign was enough to dampen her spirits.

That was when she’d made a mug of tea and gone into her bedroom, deciding to pass the time reading while she waited for… well, she wasn’t sure what.

Of course, that was when she’d heard the unmistakable sound of her back door opening and closing.

Her lips curling into what Fusco had once called her murder smile at the prospect of some action, she thought about the way she’d read that people who lost senses would often discover their others heightened. When she’d lost her hearing at the hands of Control, she’d wondered if that would apply to her and had been delighted to realize that it did indeed.

Moving as silently as possible, Root pulled open the drawer of her nightstand and pulled out one of the many guns she’d stashed around the house. Flicking the safety off, she checked to ensure it was fully loaded out of pure habit; she’d loaded it upon moving in and stashing it but she hadn’t shot anyone in an _awfully _long time, so of course it was.

She could feel her excitement building as she carefully stood up and moved over to the door. Keeping her back to the wall, she closed her eyes and savored the moment as she listened to the footsteps on the stairs that were so carefully quiet that she might have missed them if she hadn’t spent hours lying awake in bed memorizing every sound the old house made. As soon as the sound neared the top of the stairs, she grabbed the door handle and swung the door open, moving into the open doorway with her gun pointed steadily at the intruder.

The glare of the sun streaming in the windows behind her shrouded the intruder’s face and she smirked. ““I don’t know what kind of a suicide mission you’re on,” she taunted, adrenaline rushing through her veins and making her feel more alive than she had in months. “But you certainly chose the wrong-- _Sameen?” _

She had been thoroughly enjoying herself when suddenly her eyes had adjusted to the sunlight and the face she saw was too familiar and far too much for her to believe. Shaking her head quickly, she swallowed when Shaw’s face remained there and then it all finally became _real _when she heard, “What the hell?” in Shaw’s unmistakable voice.

The two former assassins stared at each other for a long while, Root having lowered her gun so that it was dangling awkwardly at her side. Her eyes were shiny with tears and glowing with happiness as she tried to process everything she suddenly knew beyond a shadow of a doubt.

One, the Machine was alive. Their desperate plan had worked and all of her feelings about this day had been right: it _was resurrection day_ after all. It was the only explanation for Shaw suddenly arriving at her house, breaking in and coming face-to-face with her.

Two, and this was the one she was truly struggling with: Shaw was here, face-to-face with her and looking like she wanted to kick Root’s ass or kiss her senseless or, knowing Shaw, probably both.

“I know you have questions,” Root finally said after what felt like ages, knowing someone had to say something. Her voice was calm but trembling with emotion and she couldn’t take her eyes off Sameen.

“Yeah, you could say that,” Shaw replied, her eyes narrowing as her anger overwhelmed her relief at seeing Root. Anger was good, pure. She could work with anger. She didn’t know what the hell to do with the rest of the feelings so she’d deal with them later. “Like why you let all of us believe you were _dead _for all this time, Root.”

Root winced at Shaw’s tone, knowing she had every right to be as pissed off as she clearly was. “I’m sorry, Sam. If there was any other way-”

“Don’t,” Shaw cut her off, shaking her head. “Goddamn it, Root, we _talked _about this,” she glared. “And you never even tried to make contact after everything.”

Root swallowed, fighting back the urge to make an inappropriate innuendo the way she’d always done when Shaw threw her off balance. She owed her far better than that, especially now. “Harold was refusing to do what needed to be done,” she said softly. “We ran over every single possibility, every battle strategy that’s ever been recorded in the history of the world trying to find something that would even our odds.”

Her gaze and voice grew steadier as she held Shaw’s gaze and explained further. “The only time The Machine saw any positive odds of any of us making it out alive was if I sacrificed myself. It was my idea, Sam. The Machine refused to even acknowledge it for a long time because She was so totally against it. It was Her idea to fake my death because it still had high enough odds to be worth it but She refused to let anything really happen to me.” She swallowed, feeling a spark of hope as understanding softened Shaw’s eyes ever so slightly.

“When we found out you were gone… I’d never seen Finch like that,” Shaw said simply, refusing to acknowledge her understanding any more beyond that.

Root nodded. “He saved all of us by finally doing what I had been trying to talk him into for months. Apparently, I couldn’t be trusted because of my past but my death could encourage him,” she smiled wryly.

Shaw swallowed, not knowing what to say to that. “It’s been months, Root. Why haven’t you done your hacker mojo and found me?” she asked, unable to fathom how _close _Root had been to her this entire time without either of them apparently knowing.

She sighed. “I know, Sam, and you have no idea how many times I wanted to try to find you. But I was afraid,” she admitted. “I didn’t want to try to find you and realize...” She let her voice trail off and for the first time in the conversation, she took her eyes off Shaw to glance up at the ceiling.

“You didn’t know if I’d made it,” Shaw surmised quietly.

“That, and I wasn’t sure if you’d want me to if you had,” she said softly. “I wanted you to have a choice in the matter, Sam, even if it was just choosing to follow the Machine again.”

She swallowed. “I still don’t know what happened to everyone. The Machine had to stop talking to me completely after we set it up to look like Samaritan had my implant,” she added, wincing as she saw the flash of pain that crossed Shaw’s face. “It was too dangerous and She was growing weak, She needed to devote Herself entirely to the fight and to protecting her assets who were still active. She’d done everything she could to ensure my safety and I understood, not that it made it easier,” she admitted, surprising even herself at how honest she was being.

Shaw felt her anger slowly fading away as she nodded, finding it replaced with sympathy and maybe, though she’d never admit it, even a bit of awe. She tried to imagine herself in Root’s position, tried to imagine being told that the war to save the world could only be won if she chose to sit it out, knowing that there was every possibility she’d never really know what had come of it all… Well frankly, she didn’t think she could have done it.

“And then everything leveled out,” Root sighed, not seeming to notice Shaw’s introspection. “It’s hard to explain but somehow, I just knew that they were both gone. The world… it just felt emptier, somehow. I didn’t feel like I was being watched anymore and everything just went quiet… until today.”

Her eyes were sparkling now, dulling the pain they still revealed as she took a small, careful step forward, noting hopefully that Shaw didn’t move away. “She’s back, isn’t She? She promised that She would reunite us the day she was resurrected and I just knew something was different when I woke up this morning.”

Shaw couldn’t help but smile; despite everything, it was comforting to know that some things, such as Root’s weird relationship with the Machine, would never truly change. “Yeah, She is,” she said softly, taking a step forward. “If you ever pull a stunt like this again, I will hunt you down and kick your ass in the least fun way possible, you got that?” she threatened, hating how Root’s smile just widened in response and yet loving it; it was just one more thing that made her presence feel _real_.

“Trust me, sweetie, I’m not going anywhere,” Root replied with a coy smile, eagerly moving into Shaw’s embrace as she pulled her into a passionate kiss.

Suddenly Bear came bounding into the room, jumping on both of them and covering Root with kisses that made her giggle as she broke the kiss in favor of greeting her favorite canine. Shaw rolled her eyes and mumbled something she didn’t understand about Bear having been acting weird.

Apparently having had enough of having their reunion interrupted, Shaw told Bear to sit and roughly pulled Root to her feet and kissed her again, the dog obeying immediately.

The moment was only made better when the cell phone she’d never bothered having connected suddenly rang and if Sameen rolled her eyes when she broke the kiss to answer it, well, it was a nice bit of normalcy that she’d sorely missed.

It was strange to hear her own voice talking to her, but she smiled at the sound. “Can you hear me, sweetie?” it asked with her own teasing tone, and she turned to smile brilliantly at Shaw, pausing for only a beat.

“Absolutely.”

~~FIN

**Author's Note:**

> Bear's commands came from the POI Wiki (I think) and a site I found listening Dutch commands for dogs. If they're wrong, please let me know and I'll fix them!
> 
> And I simply have to thank andthatisterrible for the inspiration that has been Sliding Through Chaos this entire week I've been binge-reading it. I haven't written properly in ages but that incredible story has inspired me so much!


End file.
